PAUL Harris is the Evening Mail darts champion after a brilliant display in the Grand Final.
Harris beat tournament favourite James Kempster 4-1 in front of a packed audience at The Nines on Saturday night to lift the trophy for the first time.
The 48-year-old Britannia thrower defeated Castle House players Tommy Richardson (3-1) and Chris Irvine (3-2) in the last eight and semi-finals.
The BAE Systems fitter then completed the job against another Castle House man Kempster - bouncing back after losing the first leg to win four on the trot in the best-of-seven final.
Kempster had been clinical in the opening stages of the competition, dispatching Kev Hubbold of the Robin Hood and Millom's Gary Ryce both by a 3-0 margin, but Harris proved a very worthy and popular champion.
The other quarter-final results saw Irvine beat Nikki Lavery 3-0 and Ryce squeeze past Ulverson's Steve Woodburn 3-2 in a nail-biter.
Semi-finalist and organiser Chris Irvine thanked competition sponsors Stan Jones/Colin Mason, The Nines, Dalton CC and the Cemetery Cottages. Compere Richie Hall did a great job on the microphone, while thanks also go to scorer Nick O'Toole and raffle organiser Sharon O'Toole.
* Full report, reaction and pictures in Monday's Evening Mail.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here